Turn a Plain Porch into a Cozy Reading Room Turn a Plain Porch into a Cozy Reading Room

Either placed out in the front or located to the side of our homes, the porch is an often-neglected part of the home. Often used as a place to keep everyone's shoes or as storage space for all those things that have yet to make it out to the garage, the porch tends to be given the least amount of thought out of our whole house. Strange, isn't it, when you consider that the porch is the first part of our home that visitors actually see? Would you like to dress that porch up? Interested in looking for a cozy little nook to call your own?

Follow these seven easy steps to transform your plain porch into a cozy reading room that you'll never want to leave:

Clean Things Up

Start with an empty porch. There is nothing worse than trying to work around a bunch of junk and, if your porch is like most, it's cluttered and in need of a good cleaning. Get it all out and start fresh. Furniture, artificial grass, shoes, toys, bikes - move it all outside. This is a great opportunity to clean things, sweep out the porch, take down cobwebs and get all those screens nice and clean. You're painting the perfect room, so you’re going to want to start with a nice clean canvas.

Pick the Perfect Shade

To start, you will want to choose your colors and pick your theme. Ideally, for an entirely new look, it would be nice to replace all that plastic furniture with something new, but not everyone can afford that drastic a change. Fortunately, there are various pillows, cushions and covers that can help brighten things up if you want to keep the budget to a minimum.

Wooden furniture is a nice alternative. It can be stained or painted to match a theme easily, and wooden furniture is durable when properly treated, well-suited for poor weather. Wooden furniture can look either rustic or modern, depending on your mood, and it holds color well, making it ideal in situations where you want to make a bold statement. While a bit more expensive than your plastic furniture, it has a great longevity and will do wonders for brightening up your room.

For a dramatic and beautiful fashion statement, try some bright and eye-popping contrasts. Black furniture coupled with bright turquoise accents makes for a pretty look, especially when you fill the room with plants that have bright lime green foliage. It's a bold and energetic color scheme that adds life to your room and invigorates your surroundings.

Define Your Dimensions

One of the best ways to do this is with an area rug. Rugs not only help you to define your seating area, they also help to define a room. Consequently, you will want to choose something neutral and flattering to your décor, rather than a busy pattern that will distract from the beauty of the room. Be sure to place your rug in the center of your sitting area and ensure that the legs of the chairs and tables are a minimum of 6 inches over the edge, resting on the inside of the rug. This shows where your seating area is and draws people in that direction.

Dress Those Windows

Sheers are a beautiful and romantic way to dress up a room. Offering a little privacy while adding a light and wispy feel to your new room, sheers are surprisingly inexpensive, easy to come by, and even easier to install. Using simple plant hooks, you can support thin rods to support your sheers, letting them fall freely in front of your windows, to flutter in the breeze.

Make Storage Space

A cozy nook is made all the more comfortable if you add little tables where you can set your drinks, a basket of fruit or, perhaps, a little dish of candy. Weatherproof storage trunks can add a creative twist to your room, adding a whimsical feel while proving to be useful as well. Find little hideaways that will help to make cleanup a snap and to keep all those little conveniences that you love, nice and close at hand.

Light It Up

Using table lamps or floor lamps will help to extend the number of hours that you can spend out in your new room. If you spend the evenings inside, you're missing out on one of the most beautiful times that you could be out and enjoying some fresh air. Night breezes are relaxing, when the sounds of chirping crickets and frogs are carried to your ears, the weather is cooling and the hustle and bustle of the day has died down. Evenings are perfect for relaxing and there's no excuse why you can't enjoy your room day or night.

Comforts of Home

Fill your room with things you love. Plants help give rooms a bright and refreshing feel, or perhaps you can enlist the help of your other half or your children with decorating. Books add life to a room, as well as coaxing you into the comfort of this new room and inviting you to pick them up. And why not? You've earned it. If you've followed these simple steps, you should have a beautiful room that you can cozy right up in. Kick back, relax and enjoy.